February 24, 2016: While You Wait to Hear from Colleges

posted Jun 6, 2016, 3:52 PM by Kristin Hannon

College Readiness NewsletterFebruary 24, 2016

Weekly College Update

Dear Senior Huskies, Snow Leopards, Bulldogs, and Thunderbirds,

While there might not be much you have to do right now for your college admissions process, February and March can still be a really stressful time. Whether you’re waiting for your first acceptance or hoping to hear back from your dream school, waiting for such important news is never easy.

This week’s focus is what to do while you’re waiting to hear from colleges.

You have worked hard and done everything you can, so now you just have to trust the process. Worrying won’t help and positive thinking can make you feel better. You are more than your grades and test scores. There are lots of people who care about your and support you no matter what happens.

Manage your communications with the admissions offices.

It may be tempting to call and ask the admissions office why you haven’t heard a decision from them yet. However, that won’t actually lead to them making a decision any faster. They have to go through their process. The best thing you can do is be proactive and keep checking your emails and portals for any notices. Respond right away if they say you are missing materials for your application and let your mentor know if you have questions about anything you receive from a college.

Focus on your senior year.

You only get to be a senior in high school once. Try to live in the moment as much as possible. Enjoy your time with your friends and mentor group because you may not get to see them as often next year. Additionally, your grades this year still matter, so give time and attention to your classes to make sure you’re passing for graduation.

Come talk to us if you want.

Your mentors and teachers have all been in the position you’re in now. We remember what it felt like to wait for college decisions, and we can empathize with you. Come talk to us if you want to process what you’re going through. We’re here for you.

16 Scholarships Totaling Over $6.2 Million

Examiner.com recently featured this list of scholarships that together are worth a total of $6.2 million! All of them have deadlines in February or later. It just goes to show that there's still a lot of unclaimed scholarship money for college out there, so get busy applying today!

Silicon Valley Community Fund Scholarships Now Open!

Silicon Valley Community Foundation administers a variety of scholarship programs that grant up to $40,000 to high school, community college and university students. The majority of our scholarships are designated for current or former residents of San Mateo, Santa Clara and San Francisco counties. Since 2007, our scholarship programs have awarded more than $11.2 million to help students pursue higher education.

Find a Silicon Valley Community Fund scholarship you can apply for byclicking here!

Scholarship Opportunities

Chen Foundation Scholarship ProgramWho can apply: high school seniors who are low income, planning to attend a CSU or CA community college, and have an unweighted GPA of at least 3.0Amount of the award: $2,000 (renewable)Information/Application: Chen FoundationDeadline: February 29, 2016

E4FC Scholars ProgramWho can apply: foreign born students who are not U.S. citizens and have minimum 3.3 GPAAmount of the award: up to $7,000Information/Application: E4FC ScholarsDeadline: March 1, 2016

Santa Clara Valley Society of Women EngineersWho can apply: female high school seniors pursuing engineering or computer science in collegeAmount of the award: up to $1,000-$2,500Information/Application: SWE-SCVDeadline: March 1, 2016

Steve Tirado Family Foundation ScholarshipWho can apply: Latin@ high school seniorsAmount of the award: $5,000Information/Application: Steve Tirado Family FoundationDeadline: March 19, 2016

Hispanic Scholarship FundWho can apply: must be of Hispanic heritage and have a minimum 3.0 GPAAmount of the award: $500- $5,000Information/Application: HSF General College ScholarshipsDeadline: March 30, 2016